Fence and siding system

ABSTRACT

A fence includes at least two uprights ( 1 ) and a plurality of panels ( 2 ) extending one above the other substantially horizontally between the uprights. The panels can be made from WPC. The uprights contain a longitudinal recess ( 3 ) receiving panel holding elements ( 4 ), each being adapted to hold and fix one or more panels in any of several angular positions. 
     A siding system for a building comprises a plurality of panel-like siding elements ( 20 ) having an upper and lower side as well as a front and back side. The upper side ( 21 ) is strip-shaped extending at the back side of the siding element. The lower side has a recess ( 22 ) adapted to receive the strip-shaped upper side. The back side of the siding elements are provided with at least one cavity ( 23 ) between the upper and lower sides. A plurality of clips ( 25 ) are adapted to be attached to the building and are formed to snap into the cavity of the siding elements.

The invention relates to a fence including at least two uprights and aplurality of panels extending one above the other substantiallyhorizontally between the uprights, the panels may be made from plasticcontaining material, the uprights containing a longitudinal recessreceiving panel holding elements.

Fences are known in several variations. WO 2010/125391, WO 2007/140516and DE 20 2004 019 223 U1 show examples thereof. In one embodiment, theupright may receive different type of panel holding elements orintermediate members to hold the panels in different positions.

The present invention has as one of its objects to provide a fence whichis modular and offers the user freedom to build a custom-made fence withstandard modules.

According to one aspect, the holding elements are each adapted to holdand fix one or more panels in any of several angular positions.

By providing the holding elements with means to enable the panels to bepositioned in different angular positions, the user is able to build thefence according to his/her own liking. Not only the panels between twoadjacent uprights can be placed under different angles, also eachsection of panels between two uprights can be formed individually. Sosome of the panels between uprights can be placed vertically to form aclosed wall, others could be placed under an angle with respect to thevertical so as to allow wind or light to pass through, but to hinderviewing through. Others could be placed horizontally, for example theones near the ground or if viewing through is not a problem. Thus, thefence according to the invention is very flexible and user friendly.Generally, only one type of panel holding element is needed to hold thepanels in different angular positions.

The panels and holding elements may for example include a pin-holeconnection, the pins and holes might then have a fitting polygonal crosssection. This is a very simple manner of allowing different angularpositions of the panels. Octagonal cross sections may already providesufficient different angular positions but more or less is possible ofcourse.

The pins may be attached to the panels, and if the panels are extrudedfrom plastic containing material, such as WPC (Wood Plastic Composite),each panel may have a longitudinal cavity therein adapted to receive arod protruding from at least one and preferably from both ends of thepanel to form said pins.

In this embodiment, the rod has a double function. It not only forms themounting pins at the ends of the panels, but it is also able to functionas a bending or warping resistant element for the panels, which assistsin obtaining a high quality appearance of the fence.

In one embodiment, the rod is made from aluminium, which is preferablyextruded. Such rod can be made both light-weight and rigid, especiallyif it is hollow and comprises at least one rib extending substantiallyperpendicularly to the main plane of the respective panel. Thisstructure increases bending resistance considerably. If the panels aremade by extrusion, the rod might be inserted into the panel if the panelis still warm, which facilitates insertion of the rod. If the rod andcavity are polygonal, the rod is automatically locked against rotationaround its longitudinal axis. As an alternative, the rod may be madefrom plastic or from stainless steel.

In an alternative embodiment, each pin is part of an insert attached toone of the ends of the panels. Such embodiment can be used if there isno need for additional bending resistance in the panels.

The holding elements may each have a main body and a sleeve-likeprotrusion, the hole extending through the main body and the sleeve-likeprotrusion. In this way, the insertion length of the pin in the holdingelement can be increased without need for much additional material.

To increase stability of the fence, at least one of the panels,preferably the upper panel, is secured to the opposite uprights so as toresist pulling forces. This improves the coherence of the whole fencebecause the panels not only prevent the uprights from moving towardseach other, but also from moving away from each other.

The invention also includes a kit for building a fence, comprising atleast two uprights including a longitudinal recess, a plurality ofpanels extruded from plastic containing material and having two ends,each panel having a longitudinal cavity between the two ends andreceiving therein a bending resistant rod protruding from both ends ofthe respective panel to form pins, and holding elements fitting into thelongitudinal recess and each adapted to receive one of the pins of oneof the panels.

According to another aspect, the invention also provides a siding systemfor a building, comprising a plurality of panel-like siding elementshaving an upper and lower side as well as a front and back side, theupper side being strip-shaped and extending at the back side of thesiding element, the lower back side having a recess adapted to receivethe strip-shaped upper side, the back side of the siding elements beingprovided with at least one cavity between the upper and lower sides, anda plurality of clips adapted to be attached to the building and formedto snap into the cavity of the siding elements.

Due to this structure, not only the mounting of the siding elements iseasy, but it is also possible to demount individual siding elements bypulling the siding element away from the clip(s) and then sliding thissiding element downwardly away from the overlying siding element untilthe strip-shaped upper side thereof is removed from the bottom recess ofthe overlying siding element.

The cross-section of the clips may be substantially U- or C-shapedhaving curved elastic legs, for example shaped like segments of a ring,the cavity in the siding elements having a narrow entrance to allowsnapping-in of the clips and to hold the clips. In this manner, theforce needed to mount a siding element to a clip is much smaller thanthe force needed to dismount it, so that easy mounting is combined withsolid attachment, while still being able to dismount the element usingadditional force.

The siding elements are preferably extruded from plastic containingmaterial, such as WPC or engineered polymer. However, the sidingelements might also be manufactured from stainless steel or wood.

Further details and advantages of the invention will be explained withreference to the drawings showing exemplary embodiments of theinvention.

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a part of a fence accordingthe invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of detail II in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view of a part of another fenceshowing possible angular orientations of the panels between theuprights.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged perspective plan view of the fence of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged perspective plan view of the upright as used inthe fence of FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a side view of a horizontally positioned panel andcorresponding panel holding element as used in the fence of FIG. 1.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged perspective of a part of a rod as used in thepanel of FIG. 6.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of another embodiment of a panel for use inthe fence of FIG. 1.

FIG. 9 is an enlarged perspective view of an insert and pin for use inthe panel of FIG. 8.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a siding system showing 3 sidingelements in mounted condition.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the siding system of FIG. 10 fromanother end and with the siding elements slightly moved horizontallyaway from each other.

FIG. 12 is an enlarged perspective side view of a part of a sidingelement as used in the siding system of FIG. 10.

FIG. 13 is an enlarged perspective view of a clip as used in the sidingsystem according to FIG. 10.

FIG. 14 is a perspective side view of another embodiment of a sidingelement and clip for use in a siding system.

The drawings and in first instance FIGS. 1-3 show a part of a fence orother boundary wall. The main parts of this fence are: at least twouprights 1 (only one is shown in the drawings) and a plurality of panels2 extending one above the other substantially horizontally between theuprights 2. The uprights contain a longitudinal (so vertical in theupright position) recess 3 receiving panel holding elements 4 each beingadapted to hold and fix one or more panels—in this case one panel 2—inany of several angular positions. In FIG. 1, the upper three panels 2are positioned with their main plane vertically, whereas the bottomthree panels 2 are positioned at an angle to the vertical, in this caseat 45°. FIG. 3 shows a fence having a larger number of panels 2, whichin this case are oriented at various different angles.

FIGS. 4 and 5 show the shape of the upright 1 in more detail. Theupright as shown is extruded from aluminium or an aluminium alloy,although other materials and other production methods are conceivable ofcourse. Opposite sides of the square upright 1 are provided with therecess 3. Other uprights 1 may have recesses 3 on two adjacent sides ifan upright 1 is used in the corner of a fence, and also uprights withrecesses 3 on four sides are possible. The upright may then be useduniversally for different situations in a single fence, or even at acrossing of several fences. The uprights 1 may also have other crosssections, so that the angle between the recesses (and therewith the planview angle between the panel sections) is different from 90° or 180°.One or two perpendicular stiffening ribs may be provided in the interiorof the uprights 1.

Each recess 3 includes an outer portion 5 having a dovetail-shaped crosssection and an inner portion 6 having a rectangular cross section. Thedovetail is such that panel holding elements 4 that have a fitting crosssection is held within the recess 3 by the walls, in this case theinclined walls converging outwardly towards each other. The innerportion 6 of the recess 3 is provided to receive a sleeve-shapedprotrusion 7 of the panel holding element 4. This sleeve-shapedprotrusion 7 surrounds a hole 8 that also extends through the main bodyof the panel holding element 4. The panel holding element 4 can be madefrom injection moulded plastic, for example nylon, or from metal. Thepanel holding element 4 may also be constructed without sleeve-shapedprotrusion 7.

FIGS. 6 and 7 show that hole 8 in panel holding element 4 (FIG. 6) isprovided to receive a pin 9 at each end of each panel 2. In thisembodiment, the pins 9 on both ends of the panel 2 are part of analuminium hollow rod 10 (FIG. 7) extending through the whole panel 2 andprojection from opposite ends. For this purpose, each panel 2, which ismade by extrusion from WPC, comprises a cavity 11 extending the wholelength of the panel. The panel 2 includes more longitudinal cavities 12,so that the weight of the panels 2 can be kept low, while the hollow rod10 affords additional bending strength to the panel 2. For this purpose,the extruded rod 10 comprises a stiffening bridge or rib 10′ extendingperpendicularly to the main plane of the panel 2 to be most effective inpreventing bending or warping of the panel 2. The rod 10 may alsocomprise two perpendicular ribs or no ribs.

The pins 9 fit into the holes 8, such that the pins may be positioned inthe holes 8 in different angular positions, in this case eight positionsas the outer surface of the pins and the inner surface of the holes 8are octagonal. The cross sections of the pins 9 and holes 8 do not haveto be equal, as long as the pins 9 fit into the holes. The pins 9 maythus also have for example a star-shaped cross section, points of thestar fitting in the corners of the polygonal hole 8. The panel holdingelements 4 may also be constructed without sleeve-shaped protrusion 7,which allows a bit more movement of the pins 9 in the holes 8 when thepanels 2 deform under wind load.

As mentioned, the panels 2 can be made of a (partly) recycled material,such as WPC. This WPC may for example include 65% natural wood or bamboofiber, such as from recycled wood or other natural sources, 25% polymer,such as polypropylene, and 10% of additives like colourings, UVprotectors, antifouling agent and the like. When the hollow panels aremade by extrusion, the walls thereof (inner and/or outer) are preferablyof similar thickness to obtain uniform solidification thereby preventiondeformation of the panel due to internal stresses. The rod 10 ispreferably inserted into the cavity 11 of the panel 2 when it is not yetcooled after extrusion, so that the rod can easily be inserted. Somemovement between the rod 10 and the panel 2 remains possible so that thepanel 2 can thermally expand with respect to the rod 10.

The panels may for example be 1500 mm long, 100 mm wide and 15 mm thickwith a wall thickness of 4 mm. The pins may project 25 mm from thepanels. The uprights may be 2750 mm long, of which the bottom 750 mm areintended to be buried in the ground. All kinds of variations indimensions, materials and shapes are conceivable. Normally, the panelswill have a woody appearance, and may have a completely rectangularcross section, or with bevelled edges. However, one or more panels in asection may, for example, be made from transparent material, such asplastic or glass. The panels may also consist of a frame (for example ofaluminium) filled with gauzy material, glass or other ornamentaldesigns. There may also be provided strips between the panels todecorate the fence. The strips may be made from aluminium, stainlesssteel, transparent or non-transparent plastic etc. and have a height offor example 5-20 mm.

The fence may be built from the kit parts as follows. First, theuprights 1 are driven into the soil. Generally the spacing between theuprights will be slightly larger (a few mm's) than the length of thepanels 2 in order to have some play for the panels to extend underthermal influences. Stops will be inserted into the recesses 3 in theuprights 1 and will be fixed (by a screw or the like) in the requiredposition, so that the panel holding elements 4 will come to rest in therecesses 3 in the uprights 1 at the desired height. Two panel holdingelements 4 will be attached to one of the panels 2 in the desiredangular position and then the panel holding elements 4 will be loweredinto the respective recesses 3. This is repeated for all panels 2 untilthe uprights 1 are filled with panel holding elements 4. The pins 9 ofthe upper panel 2 may be fixed to the respective panel holding elements4 to prevent their removal. This will set the spacing between the upperends of the adjacent uprights 1, as the upper panel 2 will resisttension forces exerted by the uprights 1. This will be especially thecase if the pins 9 are part of the continuous rod 10. Generally, a coverwill be placed and fixed on top of the uprights 1 to finish the lookthereof and to prevent removal of the panel holding elements 4. Furtheruprights 1 can be positioned on one or both sides of the uprightsalready placed and panels can be placed in the desired angular positionuntil the fence is complete.

FIGS. 8 and 9 show a variation of the panel 2 and pins 9. In this casethe pins 9 are part of an insert 13, generally made of plastic, forexample injection moulded nylon. The insert 13 can be positioned in oneof the cavities 12. The panels 2 in this embodiment have three suchlongitudinal rectangular cavities 12, and the insert 12 will normally beinserted into the middle cavity 12. The inserts 13 can have a strong fitwithin the cavity 12, or can be fixed by glue or the like. The insertsonly extend along a small part of the length of the panel 2, justsufficient to obtain a stable attachment to the panel 2. The pin 9 canbe solid or can be sleeve-shaped, as shown. Insertion of the pins 9 intothe panel holding elements 4 is similar to that of the formerembodiment.

Combinations are the two embodiments are possible. The last embodimentmay be combined with the first one, so that the inserts 13 are adaptedto be inserted into cavity 11. A rod of aluminium or other material maystill be positioned within the cavity 11 and extend only in a centralpart (for example 90 cm) or along substantially the complete length. Inthe second embodiment, an aluminium rod can have the cross section ofone of the cavities 12 and be inserted therein.

FIGS. 10-14 show two embodiments of a siding system for a wall of abuilding, like a house. The siding system comprises a plurality ofpanel-like siding elements 20, which might be produced by extrudingplastic containing material like WPC. However, it is also conceivable toconstruct the siding elements from wood, or even from metal, such asstainless steel. The siding elements will then be formed fromplate-shaped material.

This siding elements 20 have an upper and lower side as well as a frontand back side (as seen in the position of use on a vertical wall). Theupper side is shaped like a strip 21 extending at the back side of thesiding element, i.e. where the siding element will be mounted againstthe wall. The lower side of the siding element 20 has a recess 22 alsopositioned at and open to the back side of the element 20 and adapted toreceive the strip 21 at the upper side of an underlying siding element20, as is shown in FIGS. 10 and 11. The back side of the siding elements20 is provided with at least one cavity 23 between the upper and lowersides.

In this embodiment, the cavity 23 is formed in a rib 24 formed on theback side of the siding element 20 which is slightly bulged there sothat the rib surface is substantially planar with the back surface ofthe strip 21. The cavity 23 has a substantially circular cross sectionwith the circle crossing or touching the rear surface of the rib 24 suchthat a rounded narrow entrance 25 is formed, which entrance is narrowerthan the radius of the circle and wider than half the radius. The edgesof the entrance 25 flare slightly. The cavity may be lined with a forexample nylon or a metal, for example aluminium or stainless steel,lining, providing such rigidity that less (WPC) material is needed toform the siding element 20. The cavity 23 is adapted to receive one or aplurality of clips 26 adapted to be attached to the wall of the building(for example by screwing through a screw hole 27 in the body 28 of theclip). The clips 26 are formed to snap into the cavity 23 of the sidingelements 20. For this purpose, the cross-section of the clips 26 is U-or C-shaped having curved elastic legs 29 formed on the body 28.

In the embodiment shown, the legs 29 are shaped like the segments of acircular ring which fit tightly against the wall of the cavity 23. Theentrance of the cavity is shaped such (flared) that the legs 29 of theclip 26 are easily pushed toward each other to reduce the cross sectionof the clip 26 in order to move the legs 29 through the narrow entrance27 until the widest part of the clip 26 has passed the entrance 27 andthe clip 26 will snap into the cavity 23. Removing the clip 26 from thecavity 23 will require larger forces compared to the forces to push thelegs 29 toward each other do not engage the legs near their free endsbut near the body 28, so that the momentum on the legs 29 is muchsmaller and higher forces are needed to push the legs 29 toward eachother. This means that mounting the siding elements 20 is easier thanremoving them.

The distance between the free ends of the legs 29 should preferably besufficient to allow inward bending of the legs 29 to be moved throughthe entrance 27 of the cavity 23.

Nonetheless, the system has a great advantage that the siding elements20 are formed such that they allow individual removal. The only thingrequired for removal is pulling the respective siding element 20 off ofthe clip 26 or clips with which it is mounted to the wall and slidingand pivoting it away such that the strip 21 at the upper side of thesiding element 20 is moved out of the recess 22 of the overhangingsiding element 20. The strip 21 and/or recess 22 is shaped so as toallow such movement of the siding element 20, while the elasticity ofthe material of the siding elements 20 may also help. If a sidingelement 20 must be replaced, a new siding element will be placed theother way around, i.e. by moving the strip 21 into the recess 22 andthen pressing the cavity 23 over the clip 26 or clips attached to thewall. The recess 22 at the lower side of the siding element 20 will thenagain cover the strip 21 of the underlying siding element 20. The uppersiding element 20 will be mounted with its strip 21 in a recess of aspecial mounting element. This mounting element may also consist of aspecial siding element 20 comprising only the lower portion includingthe rib 24 (with cavity 23) and the material defining the recess 22.

The siding elements 20 may be a few meters long, while the clips 26 willgenerally be a few centimetres long, such as 30 mm. Clips 26 may beplaced with a spacing of around 30 cm. Clips 26 may be groupedvertically, i.e. clips for siding elements 20 lying one above the othermust be spaced regularly, and to guarantee a correct spacing clips 26spaced in vertical direction may be interconnected for the total heightor a part of the height of the respective wall. Of course, it is alsoconceivable to interconnect clips 26 in horizontal direction, and acombination of such interconnections would be possible as well.

FIG. 14 shows a second embodiment of the siding system. The clip 26 isequal to that of the former embodiment, but the siding element 20 isdifferent in shape, especially the internal shape thereof. The sidingelement 20 is again made by extrusion of plastic containing materiallike WPC, but now the rib 23 and the strip 21 are connected by a backwall 30. Several cavities 31 are formed internally of the siding elementto save material and avoid formation of large material concentrationswhich would lead to uneven cooling and resulting deformation or internalstresses after extrusion. However, this siding element 20 may also bemade solid, i.e. without cavities 31.

The front side of the siding element will generally have a woodimitating surface, i.e. colour and/or texture, but of course, otherdesigns are conceivable, for example to imitate brickwork.

The invention is not limited to the embodiments described above andshown in the drawings which may be varied in different manners withinthe scope of the appended claims. For example, it is possible to formthe pins on the panel holding elements which are inserted in the desiredangular position into cavities of the panels during assembly of thefence. The panel holding elements and panels will generally be designedto obtain at least three different angular positions of the panels, butfour, six, eight, twelve etc. positions are possible as well. In steadof discrete angular positions, it is in principle also possible to havea system of continuous individual variation of the angular positions ofthe various panels with a locking member, for example a locking screwlocking a round pin in a round hole, to lock the panel in the desiredposition, but normally such continuous variation will not be required.Panel holding elements may be combined to obtain one or a few panelholding elements for all panels attached to one side of the upright. Ifindividual panel holding elements are used, the height thereof may bedifferent (smaller) to obtain an overlap of panels if they arepositioned at an angle different from vertical.

1. A fence including at least two uprights and a plurality of panelsextending one above the other substantially horizontally between theuprights, the uprights containing a longitudinal recess receiving panelholding elements each being configured to hold and fix at least onepanel in an angular position different than another panel.
 2. The fenceaccording to claim 1, wherein the panels and holding elements include apin-hole connection.
 3. The fence according to claim 2, wherein the pinsand holes have a fitting polygonal cross section.
 4. The fence accordingto claim 2, wherein the pins are attached to the panels.
 5. The fenceaccording to claim 4, wherein the panels are extruded from plasticcontaining material.
 6. (canceled)
 7. (canceled)
 8. The fence accordingto claim 4, wherein each pin is part of an insert attached to one of theends of the panels.
 9. The fence according to claim 4, wherein theholding elements each have a main body and a sleeve-like protrusion, thehole extending through the main body and the sleeve-like protrusion. 10.The fence according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the panels issecured to the opposite uprights so as to resist pulling forces.
 11. Kitfor building a fence, comprising at least two uprights including alongitudinal recess, a plurality of panels extruded from plasticcontaining material and having two ends, each panel having alongitudinal cavity between the two ends and receiving therein a bendingresistant rod protruding from both ends of the respective panel to formpins, and holding elements fitting into the longitudinal recess and eachconfigured to receive one of the pins of one of the panels. 12.(canceled)
 13. (canceled)
 14. (canceled)
 15. (canceled)
 16. The fenceaccording to claim 5, wherein the plastic containing material comprisesWPC.
 17. The fence according to claim 5, wherein each of the panels hasa longitudinal cavity therein configured to receive a rod.
 18. The fenceaccording to claim 17, wherein the rod is made from aluminum.
 19. Thefence according to claim 17, wherein the rod is hollow and comprises atleast one rib extending substantially perpendicularly to a main plane ofthe respective panel.
 20. The fence according to claim 17, wherein therod protrudes from at least one end of the panel to form at least one ofsaid pins.
 21. The fence according to claim 17, wherein the rodprotrudes from both ends of the panel to form said pins.
 22. The fenceaccording to claim 10, wherein the at least one of the panels is anupper panel.
 23. The fence according to claim 2 wherein each of the pinsand associated holes comprise cooperative surfaces configured to inhibitrotation of the pin at a plurality of different angular positions whenthe pin is inserted in the associated hole.